China To Widen Market Access For Foreign Investors

China will widen market access for foreign investors and step up protection of intellectual property rights, China’s President Xi Jinping said on Wednesday ahead of the G20 meeting of world leaders in Argentina. Speaking before the Spanish upper house of parliament during a two-day stop in Madrid, Xi also said China planned to import $10 trillion worth of goods over the next five years. “China will make efforts to open, even more, its doors to the exterior world and we will make efforts to streamline access to markets in the areas of investment and protect intellectual property,” Xi said. Xi made no reference to U.S. President Donald Trump, who on Monday said he expected to move ahead with raising tariffs on $200 billion in Chinese imports to 25 percent from the current 10 percent. Two very small groups of demonstrators, one expressing opposition to China’s human rights record and one waving a “Welcome” sign, gathered outside the senate as the Chinese leader spoke.

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Very good chart: bilateral trade is highest between neighbors (China with Japan and South Korea), (US with Mexico and Canada). Would be interesting to see US- China trade included or overlaid. And, interesting fact in the graph is the extent to which Europe is closed and isolated. It just doesn't trade with anyone outside of Europe.

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China will widen market access for foreign investors and step up protection of intellectual property rights, China’s President Xi Jinping said on Wednesday ahead of the G20 meeting of world leaders in Argentina. Speaking before the Spanish upper house of parliament during a two-day stop in Madrid, Xi also said China planned to import $10 trillion worth of goods over the next five years. “China will make efforts to open, even more, its doors to the exterior world and we will make efforts to streamline access to markets in the areas of investment and protect intellectual property,” Xi said. Xi made no reference to U.S. President Donald Trump, who on Monday said he expected to move ahead with raising tariffs on $200 billion in Chinese imports to 25 percent from the current 10 percent. Two very small groups of demonstrators, one expressing opposition to China’s human rights record and one waving a “Welcome” sign, gathered outside the senate as the Chinese leader spoke.

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Actually, if this is true, it could be the opening Trump has been looking for. There is no higher authority in China than Xi, and if he addresses IP on the global stage he is sending a signal, a signal that touches right at the heart of the most major U.S. complaint. Frankly, I'm shocked that he did so. Again, if it's true.

In the U.S. viewpoint, IP and how it is "lost" to China (and others, but mostly China) is viewed as follows :

The United States currently leads the world in innovation, due in no small part to a strong legal system that confers exclusive rights and privileges on the owners of intellectual property. The World Intellectual Property Organization, an agency of the United Nations, defines intellectual property (IP) as “creations of the mind, such as inventions; literary and artistic works; designs; and symbols, names and images used in commerce.” U.S. IP can be voluntarily diffused overseas in cases in which U.S. firms provide their IP to overseas partners or participate in joint ventures. In other cases, U.S. firms may agree or be pressured to submit to technology transfer conditions in order to access foreign markets or for other reasons, such as taking advantage of tax preferences, subsidies, and preferences in government procurement. But even firms without international operations may experience theft of their IP or technology by or on behalf of overseas entities. Such theft represents an involuntary transfer of IP abroad through theft, an involuntary transfer of IP that costs the United States between $227 and $599 billion annually, according to the IP Commission (Blair et al. 2017). By way of comparison, the OECD and the EU’s Intellectual Property Office have estimated that the global trade in counterfeit and pirated goods alone cost as much as $461 billion in 2013, 2.5 percent of world trade. Virtually every industry in the United States either produces or uses IP, but certain IP-intensive industries are an important and growing share of the U.S. economy. These include pharmaceuticals, aerospace, computer hardware and software, electronics, medical equipment, chemicals, and automobile manufacturers. With their high rates of innovative research and development, these industries are special targets for IP expropriation. Lost IP prevents firms from generating a return on investment in their research-and-development (R&D) costs, thus discouraging them from continuing to invest in R&D and hampering U.S. innovation. As shown in figure 5-12, the theft of trade secrets annually represents $180 billion to $540 billion in value; and pirated software and counterfeit goods combined account for about $47 billion of the costs of IP theft. Precise figures are difficult to come by, in part because firms may not be aware that their property has been stolen, or may be hesitant to publicize a theft that has been detected. Technology transfer. Technology transfers can occur if governments require a company to transfer its IP in order to access markets in that government’s country. For example, Chinese industrial policy includes provisions specifically calling for the acquisition of foreign technology and innovation. In August 2017, the U.S. government launched a Section 301 investigation into China’s alleged acts, policies, and practices related to technology transfers. U.S. firms may seek to enter China for reasons including taking advantage of lower unit costs of labor, gaining access to its large domestic market, and making use of integrated supply chains for other markets. To access the Chinese markets, however, stiff entry costs in the form of mandatory IP and technology transfer requirements are sometimes imposed. Among other things, Chinese policies and practices selectively require foreign firms to transfer their technologies to Chinese subsidiaries or joint venture partners to gain access. The ongoing investigation seeks to assess whether and how four types of Chinese practices hurt U.S. firms: (1) Chinese joint venture and other approval processes that force U.S. companies to transfer technology or otherwise compromise IP; (2) acts, policies, and practices that prevent U.S. businesses from establishing market-based terms in licenses and negotiations with Chinese companies; (3) Chinese government–supported acquisitions or investment in U.S. companies to “obtain cutting-edge technologies and generate large-scale technology transfer in industries deemed important by Chinese government industrial plans”; and (4) Chinese government–supported “intrusions” in U.S. computer networks or “cyber-enabled theft of intellectual property, trade secrets, or confidential business information.”

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I'm amazed at how short sighted Americans have become about our current position in the world because of Trump. China will never again put itself in the position it encountered with the US because they could very possibly deal with another leader like Trump. China's ambitious Belts and Roads Project, it's forays into Africa to establish trade and opening it's markets to the rest of the world. China holds over $1 trillion of US debt, she has found alternative markets for her goods and she has figured out a way to keep the oil from Iran flowing and there's no pressure that could be applied by the US to stop the trade. Iran has the world's 3rd largest oil reserves and they're selling oil to China at a bargain basement price. Cheap energy is catalyst this emerging economy needs to build the surplus needed to become the premier superpower in the world. China will have much more to spend on their military and other projects while the US drowns in a mountain of debt. The service on the national debt, non discretionary defense spending and other projects will soon bring America to her knees.

Folks unless America comes to her senses and turn this ship around we're doomed. This country will look like a scene out of the Walking Dead without the Zombies in 8-10 years. America is declining fast and will soon reach the point of no return!